The Big Green swimming and diving team heads to Florida for its annual winter training...

Courtesy: Dartmouth

Hello From the Sunshine State: 2012-13 Winter Training Trip Blog

Dartmouth

11-29-2012

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Hello From the Sunshine
State: 2012-13 Winter Training Trip Blog

The Dartmouth men's and women's swimming and diving teams
will embark on their annual winter training trip Dec. 6-17 and this year will
head to Key Largo and Islamorada, Fla. The team will be providing a "behind the
scenes" blog so that friends, family and Big Green swimming and diving fans can
keep up with their adventures. Make sure
to check in to see what the team is up to down in the Sunshine State.

2012 Winter Training
Trip Itinerary

Thursday Dec. 6-
Depart for Key Largo

Thursday Dec.
6-Monday Dec. 17

Training in Key Largo/Islamorada

Excursions:
Key Largo Boat Parade
Scuba Diving
Sunset Cruise

Thursday, Dec 6, 2012

Day One: Away We Go ...(Laura Hayes and Jake Lee)
The Dartmouth swim team's trip to Florida began bright and
early in the chilly Hanover dawn. As in previous years, the bus got caught in
heavy traffic outside of Boston and we managed to almost miss our flight.
Matters were further complicated when Joseph Chance '13 lost his wallet, but thankfully
had his passport. Once we were all on the plane (and yes, we all made it), it
was a straight flight to Fort Lauderdale.

Once there, all 54 starved swimmers made a beeline for lunch
after boarding the fleet of eight minivans. After a delicious meal at various
fast-food restaurants, we headed southbound for the Keys. An hour and a half
later, we checked into the luxurious Bayside Inn and quickly headed back out
for practice in Islamorada.

The minivan fleet was disrupted when the van of our fearless
leader, Coach Jenn (Verser), faced the typical flat tire. Thankfully, no one
was injured and, with the help of Aaron Athanas '16 and James Verhagen '16,
Coach Jim (Wilson) managed to put the spare tire on and all eventually arrived
at the pool.

DCSD loosened up in the pool under the lights and then hit
up the Conch House for dinner featuring a five-course meal. Following that, a
few groups ran to the store to pick up snacks for the week, and then retired to
their rooms in anticipation for an early morning practice.

This wonderful day started off in a
frightening way: crossing the four-lane highway to the Jacobs Aquatics Centre
where the news of that morning's set was broken to us. Both of these events
were frightening to us. We were doing the infamous ladder set. Bum bum
bummmm. The sprinters were thankful that
we broke up into groups for the set. They worked hard doing a mini ladder and
LOTS OF vertical kick. The distance group had the full 7.5km set.

Upon completion of the dreaded set, weary
bodies trekked back to the hotel for a quick bite to eat for breakfast. Many
went off in their free time to find lunches for the days to come at the local
supermarket. Coming back everyone settle in for the customary midday nap. Many swimmers
chose to do this on the beach outside the hotel.

In the heat of the 2pm Florida sun we went
back to the long course pool for afternoon practice. We, once again, split up
into our groups for another tough practice session. Immediately after, we headed off for an early
dinner at the Conch House.

After a hearty dinner we went to a
Christmas festival where we saw how people in the Keys celebrate Christmas. We
joined in the celebration taking photographs under a snow-spewing Christmas
tree and attempting to take a team photo with Santa. Some swimmers, still
hungry dropped into Dairy Queen on the way back to the hotel. Like most places
we invade, the Dairy Queen was overwhelmed by our presence but we were all
satisfied once we had our Blizzards in hand.

The day was topped off with the men's team
throwing a football and playing ping pong outside while the women's team bonded
over a game of Charades.

We started the second full day of training with a beautiful walk in the warm, dark Florida drizzle to morning practice. The coaches were so kind to give our shoulders a break by assigning us a wonderful 4300+ meters of kicking for this morning's practice. They included some vertical kicking, a refreshing change from the normal grind. As our legs went numb from the pain of dolphin kicks, Jim kept us going with tempting promises about a breakfast that would be better than yesterday (not that orange juice and bread are all that hard to improve on...).

After a quick jog across the highway (while dodging speeding automobiles) we came upon Doc's Diner, where the locals eat! The waiters warned us to clear out the middle of the table, and in they paraded carrying massive platters of food from the kitchen. Everything from pancakes to hash browns were present; a true swimmer feast. The girl's table was so desperate for satisfying grub they jumped at everything in sight; like barbarians, many began eating eggs with their hands.

We had some chill time after breakfast to digest our delicious meal. From napping to reading to tanning in the Florida sun, the swimmers had a few hours of much deserved rest. And then came our lift session.

We had acquired time to do weights at a local gym called Froggy's. Ross knows how to properly kill us in the weight room and today was no different. We worked on upper body strength to balance the kicking we did in the morning, and after we drove directly to the pool for our third workout of the day.

The University of Kalamazoo swim team is also on their training trip in Key Largo, so DCSD coaches chatted with 'zoo coaches and planned a joint practice for the evening. We did a brief warmup (during which the entire men's team swam in one lane and the entire women's teach in another) and lined up behind the blocks for a lovely afternoon of sprint 50s. It was our first practice with "meterage" less than 6000.

To finish off the day, the teamed dined together once again under the flickering tiki torches of the Key Largo Conch House and enjoyed delicious lasagna. Some of the group went to watch a boat parade in downtown Key Largo while the rest of the team headed back to the hotel to rest up for tomorrow's set.

Starting out this lovely day with a quick drive over to the
Jacobs aquatic center in Senior Jay Margherio's van and quickly changing into
my suit, I discovered todays set as a result of a small miracle was recovery.
And the recovery set turned out to be even better as the sun just peaked over
the horizon, to make the clouds an eerie black. The moon still hanging in the
sky led to an interesting conversation with two teammates about what phase the
moon was and how the sun affected it. Practice quickly flew by with some
relatively easy backstroke, we ended it with some quick snake-sprint-esque relays
that should have been won, but due to a few unnecessary breaths my team lost.
Regardless, we were all glad for some as Jim called it "deserved rest".

After the team enjoyed another wonderfully filling breakfast
at Doc's Diner we returned to the hotel to grab our bikinis and trunks then
headed out to Whale's Harbor. With Avicii's Levels blasting and hands fist
bumping out windows our convoy cruised through the Keys. With a smaller boat
waiting at the harbor for our arrival, the first group of six girls boarded and
began their parasailing adventure. The rest of the team, coaches and Jim's wife
boarded a large catamaran equipped with snorkeling gear, refreshments and some
relaxing tunes and set out to sail the ocean. As we watched the first group
soar 600 feet above the ocean the team became excited. Partners were quickly
chosen, groups of six made and arguments had about which groups would be second
third or fourth. While waiting for our
turns on the catamaran we snorkeled, ate, visited a sand bar and just chilled.

After a near whole day of sitting in the sun, swimming in
the ocean, playing football on the sand bar we all returned to the catamaran,
mostly sun burnt. After all of the parasailing groups had returned we made our
way back to whale's harbor. After a quick break down of what would happen that
night (and later this week) we thanked the captain and his first mate and went
on our way to dinner. Followed by receiving a free shirt and some delicious
pulled pork and fries from Doc's the majority of both squads proceeded to the
small beach in back of the hotel to either play some ping pong or watch the sun
set over perfectly flat horizon of Florida. Spending the day in paradise the
Dartmouth way. Vox Clamantis in paradiso.

Waking up at
5:30 after a whole day in the sun without afternoon practice was arguably the
most horrible wake up yet. Swimming with sore and sunburned shoulders was rough
for all, especially the distance group, who had to do the infamous 6x900 set. I
was extremely lucky this morning, after being in the distance group every practice
up until today when I was moved into the stroke group for the first time.
Dodged a bullet there...

After practice,
we were on our own for breakfast. Some of the people more dedicated to food
went to the Waffle House, while most just went back to the hotel to get a
quick, free, and very simple meal before heading straight to their rooms for a
long nap before weights. I myself took a 4.5-hour nap. Most took more moderate
naps and had time to lie out by the pool, read, play ping-pong, etc.

At weights, we
worked our biceps, triceps, and shoulders all the while complaining about the
prospect of having what many call the hardest practice of training trip, the
400 IM set, after weights. We did not like the idea of doing over a mile of fly
(and every other stroke) after killing our arms.

After a quick
return to the hotel, we went to the long course pool, completely prepared to
struggle and die over the course of the next two hours. Surprisingly, most of
us were upset that the coaches changed their mind and gave us a different
practice, as we just wanted to get it out of the way. Practice ended up being a
choice between an IM or a freestyle set, with a surprise King Of Kick test set
at the end.

Dinner at Docs was
great; we were given heaping plates of spaghetti and garlic bread, which we all
wolfed down in order to get back to the hotel and try to squeeze in seven hours
of sleep before another day with two workouts along with a scuba diving or
snorkeling trip the next day.

After waking up
tired and walking or vanning over to the pool, our 6AM practice was thankfully
not too difficult, including a mix of IM and freestyle. In addition to the
light practice, many of the men got out extra early to go to scuba diving
practice. Everyone went to Doc's again after practice and enjoyed their
generous offerings of pancakes, hash browns, eggs, sausage, bacon, French
toast, rolls, and bananas.

After
breakfast, the team split up and did many different kinds of activities. For
the fourteen men (including Ross) who chose to go scuba diving, they spent
their morning in a hotel pool learning the basic skills needed to be safe under
30 feet of water. After lunch, they took a boat about five miles offshore to
two different dive sites. Many different kinds of fun marine life were spotted,
including a shark, eels, a lobster, and pipefish.

For those who
did not go on the scuba trip, many went snorkeling and many opted to stay and
rest at the hotel. The Bayside Inn-ers slept, made runs to Walgreens, and made
use of the ping-pong table (with 16's Emily and Charlotte finishing
victorious).

Those who went
snorkeling took the hour-long boat ride to see the famous underwater golden
statue of Jesus and explore reefs 10 miles offshore. Marine life sightings
included eels, barracudas and many different types of fish. The boat rocking
caused some to be queasy and concerned for the boat's buoyancy, but all went
well.

Everyone
arrived back at ye olde Bayside for a little while to grab some food and get
ready for practice at 6. At practice, the highly anticipated IM set was
bestowed upon us, just the birthday gift Charlotte Williams wanted. At least
the 16's no longer had to wait in fear and speculation for this infamous
training trip workout! The sprinters did a modification of the 12 400 IMs and
16 100s, and luckily there were no casualties after the grueling set.

With few being
able to raise their arms very high above their heads, the team packed into vans
for The Conch House. Dinner included the usual salad and fruit salad, as well
as Caribbean rice and versatile chicken. Tired and ready for bed, the team
headed home, eager for sleep to recover from the long day spent in the ocean
and pool.

We began the
day with yet another 6 am morning practice that consisted mainly of kick and
IM. It wasn't as much of a recovery from the previous nights 16x400 IM set as
many had hoped. The girls who were going scuba diving got to get out early, and
after practice everyone feasted at Doc's again for breakfast.

The girls who
went scuba diving were lucky enough to see sharks, sea turtles, eels,
stingrays, and also Val fondle the scuba instructor. Despite the fact that the
water was choppier than expected, everyone seemed to have a jolly old time.

While many of
the woman's team were out scuba diving, the rest of the team had no organized
plans. While many took the standard four to five hour daily nap, some chose to
seize the opportunity (carpe diem!) to go explore. A group of the guys went to
Miami and went to the beach. But let's be real, the highlight of the trip out
there was Chipotle and Yogurtland (unfortunately, one car had insufficient time
to make it to Yogurtland and had to quickly rush back to make practice on time.
Don't worry, we made it!). While the drive out was about an hour and a half,
most would agree that it was well worth the trip. It was the first time any of
us had stepped foot on a beach so far this trip and there was plenty of tanning
and feasting for the boys.

At afternoon
practice, we worked on our speed with some fast 50s. After practice we had yet
another meal at Doc's diner, which consisted of freshly caught fish and corn
pudding, a Southern favorite.

On the eighth day of training trip, the coaches gave
everyone the gift of an extra hour of sleep and no afternoon swim practice (a
much needed rest)! Starting the day off at Jacobs Aquatic Center at the blessed
time of 7 AM, the team broke up into the usual sprint, distance, and stroke
groups, which was immediately followed by a bountiful breakfast at Docs
graciously provided by Jacobs Aquatic Center.

The team headed back to Bayside Inn to rest up before
afternoon lift at Froggy's. Following the lift at Froggy's, the entire teams
headed out for a night on the sea on a sunset cruise! Sadly, it was a cloudy
day so there was no actual sunset in sight but the team had a blast anyway. A
limbo contest formed with Rebecca Butler '15 as the female victor and Daniel
Chen '16 as the male victor. Rebecca and Daniel battled it out and though it
was a close call, Daniel Chen pulled out the victory.

The night continued on with classic dance party jams such as
Cupid Shuffle, Gagnam Style, (the Dartmouth classic) Blame it on the Boogie,
and the DCSD favorite, Levels by Avicii. After the dance party settled down,
the team was graced by a solo lip sync performance by team captain, Will
Derdeyn '13 to the 90's hit "I Want It That Way" by the Backstreet Boys. Next
up, Aaron Athanas '16, Matthew Ginsberg '16, and Daniel Chen '16 put on an
impromptu performance of "Just a Friend". After the sensational singing boys concluded
their shows, the comedy segment began. James Verhagan '16, Erin Henn '14, Joseph Chance '13, and Charlotte Williams '13 really brought down the house with their
comical interludes. After the sunset cruise, the men and women's teams went on
their own ways for dinner and to rest up for the upcoming days of training.

For the second morning in a row, DCSD was treated with a 7
A.M. practice- a whole extra hour of sleep! However, we were also faced with a
cold, breezy morning and a long course practice of 20 x 200s free.

After practice, we went our separate ways; some girls (and
guys) were found lounging by the pool for the eighth day in a row, while others
retreated to their dens to sleep. The hotel manager surprised the team with 10
large Domino's pizzas and sodas for lunch that were delivered poolside.

Today we were lucky enough to see the sunrise and sunset
during practice, instead of practicing in complete darkness. The practice began
with splitting the men's and women's teams up, thus beginning the rivalry.
After a short set, the coaches surprised us with a gender divided relay. To
make it more interesting, the women swam freestyle, while the men swam a medley
relay. Despite the women's blatant cheating attempts to defeat the men
(including 10 second early starts), the men claimed the victory and received the
award of a 100-meter warm down instead of 300 meters.

As everyone showered and changed, the team anticipated the
traditional Date Night. The men's and women's teams gathered around while each
guy pulled a lady's name from a hat, revealing who they would take to dinner
for some one-on-one or two-on-one bonding time. The vans went to several
different restaurants, where some couples paired up to make the evening less
awkward.

Some dates were simple like Nejc Zupan '14 and Teva Levens
'14 went for a fish and chips buffet, while others kept it classy and went to
waffle house and jammed out to the juke box. Even a few went above and beyond
by shaving and dressing up for their dates (Matthew Ginsberg '16, One June Chang'13,
James Verhagen '16). Even if just for a moment the men's and women's teams forgot
the differences they may have had in the past and enjoyed a balmy Key Largo evening
basking in the warmth of their teammates' company.

This lovely
morning began with a chance to sleep in until 7:15 for our 8: 00 a.m. workout,
which consisted of a massive kick set. The team, too sore to move, was rewarded
for our efforts with another quality breakfast from Doc's, this time with
cantaloupe.

On our own for
the rest of the afternoon, some swimmers chose to lie out by the pool while
others went on shopping trips for secret Santa gifts.

Later, we
headed back to the pool at Founder's Park for the dreaded test set, King
of the Hill (20 x 100s). After surviving the grueling practice, we had the
evening to ourselves. The men's team went to see The Hobbit, while many of the
women's team went to Mrs. Mac's for another delicious meal and then had some
quality time together back at the hotel.

We began
our morning by sleeping in an extra hour yet again, and gathering to leave at 8
a.m. for Charlotte Williams' '13 house in Boca Raton. There was a minor setback
on the transportation side, as usual; Jay Margherio '13 led his van astray, but
luckily they all got to the Boca Raton Community High School Pool by the time
warm up ended. We were pleasantly surprised by short course yards for the first
time all trip. Underwater speakers made the 16 150s set slightly more bearable,
as it turned into a contest to see who could fit the most equipment from their
gear bags on their bodies. After, we split up into the regular sprint, stroke,
and distance groups.

When practice
ended, we had a short break to run across the street and get a quick snack from
Jamba Juice, 16 Handles, or Whole Foods (yay civilization!) before lift. Today
we did weights at Florida Atlantic University, where air conditioning is still
just an abstract concept.

After the
team sweated out at least half our collective body weight, we piled into very
smelly vans to drive to the Williams household a few minutes away. Mr. and Mrs.
Williams graciously provided a delicious catered meal and opened their house
for 50 swimmers as well as members of the Williams family. Some swam in the
pool, others took advantage of the cable television to watch football, and the
rest headed straight for the food.

After a
delicious meal including salad, fried rice, teriyaki chicken, birthday cake and
ice cream, the team packed up and headed for a nearby mall. Many swimmers went
shopping for Secret Santa gifts for tomorrow night, while others chose to visit
Yogurtland and Chipotle... again.

The drive
back to the hotel was entertaining, if a little stressful because of the
traffic. The seniors rushed off to change for their annual Senior Dinner with
the coaches, while the rest of us chilled at the hotel and local restaurants
and shops.

Today was our last full day here in the Keys. It all started
with a workout in the long course Founders Park pool followed by a short ocean
swim right in Founders backyard. The ocean workout turned out to be the seniors
appreciation set. The seniors completed one lap around a buoy in the
seaweed-filled sea, the juniors two, sophomores three and the poor freshman completed
four.

After the morning practice, groups dispersed for various
breakfasts. Some headed to the usual Waffle House, others to Doc's Diner and
yet others settled for the continental breakfast at the hotel. With a
substantial break between practices, some swimmers travelled to Key West for
the mid-morning and afternoon. They took an hour break halfway at a scenic
beach and then continued on the have lunch and shop in Key West. Everyone else
hung round the hotel soaking up the last rays of sun they would see for a
while. Katie turned into a lobster under the hot sun. James and Logan took the
opportunity to explore the bay on the hotel kayaks.

At 3:30pm we all gathered up again for our last afternoon
practice of the trip. We all warmed up together and then broke up into groups
(which we could choose ourselves this time!). Inter-class relays would decide
which year could get out first. The 14's made a late charge in the first medley
relay to pip the freshman and get out first. The 16's would get out next as
they won the next relay (partly due to the 15's getting disqualified for
blatant cheating). The sophomores and seniors were duly punished for their
indiscretions with lengthy warm downs.

The locker (particularly the girls' one) then
became a frenzy of activity, as everyone got ready for the team Christmas
dinner. Everyone, dressed to the nines, headed to a Brazilian Steakhouse for a
delicious buffet including sixteen different cuts of meat. Dinner ended with
lots of pictures and jokes.

We finished off the day by exchanging gifts in a team secret
Santa. Everyone was in charge of presenting one other team mate with a small
present, many of which had a humorous story behind them!

One day and one big set to go.

Tuesday
December 18th

Day 13:
Wrap Up (Daniel Whitcomb on behalf of the Class of 2016)

The most
anticipated set of the year was on everyone's mind as they stumbled out of
their beds, through the rain, and into the vans for our final trip to Founder's
Park. Few spoke on the drive in order to save every joule of energy for the 100
x 100s we were about to embark upon.

The set
began before even the first ray of sunlight had broken over the horizon. As we
dove in, we understood why it is said to be darkest before the dawn. We were so
close to the end, but our greatest challenge remained.

The set is
rarely a physical challenge, but is always a mental gauntlet. Some do their
best to not think, hoping time will pass quicker. Others do their best to get a
good song stuck in their head. I was stuck on the numbers. 12 100s took 17
minutes; 10 100s took 14 minutes, 10 seconds. all 100 would take 2
hours, 21 minutes, and 40 seconds. The people on the 1:20 interval would be
done 8 minutes, 20 seconds before we would. The set makes you do crazy things.

Well after
the sun had risen, one by one the different interval groups finished up.
Everyone was in bliss as they broke the seal of their goggles and hopped onto
dry land for the first time in hours. The only thing left for DCSD to do was
get home. We all packed into vans once again and made the trek to Fort
Lauderdale or Miami.

I thought
I would be ecstatic to get home, but I write this while sitting alone in the
airport, the first time in many weeks without having the team at my side.
Swimming is the focus of this trip, but everything else is what is really worth
remembering. The piles of food at Doc's, the hours of relaxing by the pool, parasailing,
snorkeling, and scuba diving. The dancing on our sunset cruise, and a wonderful
Christmas dinner. It brought us closer as a team, and will be the most
important thing we bring away from Key Largo as we hit our competition season,
and Ivies in only a few months. I can guarantee I am not the only one who wants
to be back in Hanover as soon as possible to continue the work and fun that we
had on this year's training trip.